U.S. DISTRICT COURT ORDERS MICHIGAN SEX OFFENDER REGISTRY ACT UPDATE
In 2016, Michigan’s Sex Offender Registry Act was deemed unconstitutional due to extremely harsh penalties that were too broadly used against registered sex offenders. Despite that ruling, nothing has been done to correct the Act — until now.
Thanks to the efforts of our sex crime defense lawyers of Oliver Law Group P.C. and the ACLU, a U.S. district court judge recently ordered Michigan lawmakers to make the necessary updates to the Sex Offender Registry Act. The lawmakers have just 90 days to come up with a new draft that fits constitutional regulations.
Examples of current major issues with the Act:
Sex offenders must immediately register their email addresses and vehicle information once convicted of a sex crime.
Police “checkups” must occur once every three months for many offenders.
Registry and all of its requirements are permanent in nearly all cases, even for minor offenses.
Offenders can be arrested for living, working, or just existing within 1,000 feet of a schoolyard.
After the Act was deemed unconstitutional, lawmakers claimed the ruling was meant to be used on a case-by-case basis, not as a blanket ruling. The ACLU, Oliver Law Group, and the University of Michigan Clinical Law Program stepped up to help protect the rights of the accused and convicted, as well as enforce the ruling as intended. They collectively filed a class action lawsuit, which was successful in reaching U.S. District Judge Robert Cleland, who ordered the future legislative changes to the Act.
Although it is not known exactly how lawmakers will revise Michigan’s Sex Offender Registry Act, it is expected the new revisions will align the Act to that of other states in constitutional compliance. The ACLU of Michigan is hopeful it will place more attention on sex crime prevention, rather than punishment.
You can learn more about this story by clicking here and reading a full Detroit Free Press article, featuring mention of Oliver Law Group P.C. To speak to our criminal defense team about a sex crimes case in Michigan of your own, please call and arrange a consultation. Across our 22+ years of practice experience, we have helped thousands of clients with